The new Novartis drug may represent an interesting discovery in the fight against heart attacks and possibly cancer. Although the drug is presented in a pre-sales stage, it has been received well by the medical community but it also has its critiques. The drug basically works by reducing the risk of a heart attack not by lowering cholesterol but by reducing inflammation.

Price and efficiency

The drug seems to work for different conditions. And this is why some variations of the medicine are already on sale or a rare form of arthritis in children. The problem lays in the price which makes it virtually inaccessible to most people. It costs around 200.000$. One possible explanation for the prohibitive price comes with the years of research and development. Reducing inflammation has been a direct quest from the early `90s and many research projects invested considerable amounts to discover this medical possibility.

But what can the drugs cure cancer? This is the question that many scientists have tried to answer. The quick response is that it could, but not at this stage. There are still plenty of uncertainties when it comes to the drug. Even more, many professionals have expressed their opinions with regards to the inflammation reduction modus operandi and it seems that inflammation can be linked to cancer but the drug is certainly not ready for mass use at the moment clinically and even from a price standpoint.

Then there is the situation of ethics with modern and strong medicine. While it is true that cancer research is very expensive, it might not be the case with the news of the Novartis drug which comes at 200.000$. This is what many scientists argued at the Barcelona event where the drug was presented. Professionals want to see a more affordable drug and it might be the case that this will never happen. While the company might be working on the latest versions of the drug and testing in some cases of arthritis, it might be still difficult to bring the price down considerably. Even with a 50% price drop, it would still be too expensive for most people.

But what this tells us is that the company made some impressive discoveries in a field which has not been previously considered. This is why it still remains controversial for some professionals. But it can certainly be a good foundation for what the future could look like with heart and cancer medication. From an inflammation-treating perspective, it seems that these conditions have some connection. But more research will be required to establish how and if this drug can indeed be used for cancer patients. It seems that the early release for kids` arthritis might be a good starting point an if proven successful, the drug can be a good base on what needs to follow. The two main conditions for this to happen represent its actual results and its price point which needs to be reduced.

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